Generator

[Drifter]

It looks like the only answer you are going to get is ' we don't have a clue about the generator you mention, however, we don't like them and so must impress upon you not to like one also, we aren't going to say we don't know about the generator in question we are just going to turn the question into something else and apparently convince you that you should not have asked the question in the first place indeed you should have congratulated everyone on their choice of solar and additional batteries'...looks like your guilty of looking for answers and information so that you can weigh up alternatives for yourself, how dare you!

Kim el..... took the words out my mouth ?

 

[Drifter]

BTW... where will you store it in your MH? Does it have a sealed fuel tank... what about fumes?
What's your payload like? Will you have capacity for genie, fuel, especially if you're taking a couple of e-bikes too

On a rack on the bike rack or tow bar, we have around nearly 500 payload

 

[Drifter]

It looks like you don't understand the responses.

Arrogant much? ?

 

[Langtoftlad]

Enjoy

 

[MattR]

Arrogant much? ?

I'm not sure that I've come to a conclusion but if this is how a new member comes to the party without any experience of motorhoming and responds to people who have many years of motorhoming behind them, I would have to suggest that it looks like yes. Anyway, moving on, I hope that you have better luck with your next questions

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[ambulancekidd]

I live in wet and windy Scotland which is why I worry about the usability of solar power. For the first few months / year we don’t intend going too far so relying on sun might be optimistic
When you say sufficient, do you use much 240 power? Use Internet, live off grid?
I want my MH to be absolutely flexible and useable in all conditions and a gennie seems to fit the bill within a reasonable cost- if the generator I listed is useable and realistic
Under 300 quid is not a great expense, 1000 quid for a Honda is.
I’m looking for feedback on people who use gennies, or people who have and found them a waste of time. Some folk love them and think they are the answer, some folk see them as the devils offspring which gets in the way of objective replies

We have similar issues with solar & I like heading out into our dark skies park in mid winter to do some star gazing, so a genny is peace of mind & its never used anywhere near other campers let alone motorhomes.

Ours is a Honda Eu10 & seems to do the job fine, it was bought second hand for around £400 if memory serves me right.
Ours is LPG powered & has never run on petrol, so there are no lingering unpleasant smells, no fuel can to be carried, win win if you ask me.

Hope that helps....Robert

 

[Minxy]

I must have missed the bit about the hair drier ... now that REALLY will get them going!

 

[Ivory55]

When the hairdryer is used on the generator it does make a bit of noise , but it’s only for a short time

 

[Minxy]

On a rack on the bike rack or tow bar, we have around nearly 500 payload

Er, you're not gonna like this but ... until you get your new MH and weigh it empty, or load it up and take it to a weighbridge you do NOT know what payload you had/have ... what is stated by the manufacturers is often very much greater than what you have in reality ... not to mention axle loading restrictions ... sorry, don't want to pour any more rain (petrol?) on your parade but I speak from experience and you need to be aware.

 

[Drifter]

I'm not sure that I've come to a conclusion but if this is how a new member comes to the party without any experience of motorhoming and responds to people who have many years of motorhoming behind them, I would have to suggest that it looks like yes. Anyway, moving on, I hope that you have better luck with your next questions

I

It looks like you don't understand the responses.

just because I don’t immediately agree with one persons viewpoint doesn’t mean I don’t underastand
I may not have much experience with a motor home but I have a few years experience of Scotland and living in a caravan for holidays
I value all input and thank you for yours on the thread but the last post does come across as a little arrogant, i have only been open and honest about my lack of experience, it doesn’t mean I’m an idiot

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[Drifter]

I must have missed the bit about the hair drier ... now that REALLY will get them going!

Sadly I have no need for these ungodly contraptions ?

 

[Drifter]

Er, you're not gonna like this but ... until you get your new MH and weigh it empty, or load it up and take it to a weighbridge you do NOT know what payload you had/have ... what is stated by the manufacturers is often very much greater than what you have in reality ... not to mention axle loading restrictions ... sorry, don't want to pour any more rain (petrol?) on your parade but I speak from experience and you need to be aware.

It’s ok, I’m getting used to it ?

 

[MattR]

I

just because I don’t immediately agree with one persons viewpoint doesn’t mean I don’t underastand
I may not have much experience with a motor home but I have a few years experience of Scotland and living in a caravan for holidays
I value all input and thank you for yours on the thread but the last post does come across as a little arrogant, i have only been open and honest about my lack of experience, it doesn’t mean I’m an idiot

No one has mentioned anyone being an idiot

My comments are based on years of seeing similar threads and years of mh experience. I don't have as much as others and don't know your situation and if I have come across as being arrogant, apologies but it does seem that you are jumping into buying something much earlier than others would. The suggestion that you wait for a bit is to save buying the wrong item; there seems to be some arrogance coming across from someone who has stated that they are new to mhoming but is dismissing so much advice; I truly don't care what you do with your resources but if I were in your situation, I'd wait.

 

[Drifter]

No one has mentioned anyone being an idiot

My comments are based on years of seeing similar threads and years of mh experience. I don't have as much as others and don't know your situation and if I have come across as being arrogant, apologies but it does seem that you are jumping into buying something much earlier than others would. The suggestion that you wait for a bit is to save buying the wrong item; there seems to be some arrogance coming across from someone who has stated that they are new to mhoming but is dismissing so much advice; I truly don't care what you do with your resources but if I were in your situation, I'd wait.

I almost agree with your view point but again you seem to disregard my assumption I need more power than solar which is based on actual conversations with real MH users and years of caravan experience and decades of Scotland weather
I never asked for advice on whether I needed a gennie, i asked for advice on a particular model
If I buy the wrong item at 300 quid, it will be used for my business and hopefully by that time comes I will have some money in my wallet. This model is not my first choice, but having just forked out over 30k I’m not feeling flush so budget is a bit restricted
My prediction is I will buy the one from Screwfix, or the Clarke’s suggested earlier to buy some time to fill the coffers a bit then look at better options

 

[tacr2man]

Drifter I think your decision to get a gennie is a good move as you will certainly need it for the popcorn machine

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[Drifter]

Drifter I think your decision to get a gennie is a good move as you will certainly need it for the popcorn machine

Yeah I agree. That and powering the spit roast for any new forum users will eat my battery. Bring on the noobs ?

 

[Minxy]

... which is based on actual conversations with real MH users ...

What are we then? Pretend ones? ?

 

[Drifter]

What are we then? Pretend ones? ?

My imaginary pals ?

 

[MattR]

I almost agree with your view point but again you seem to disregard my assumption I need more power than solar which is based on actual conversations with real MH users and years of caravan experience and decades of Scotland weather
I never asked for advice on whether I needed a gennie, i asked for advice on a particular model
If I buy the wrong item at 300 quid, it will be used for my business and hopefully by that time comes I will have some money in my wallet. This model is not my first choice, but having just forked out over 30k I’m not feeling flush so budget is a bit restricted
My prediction is I will buy the one from Screwfix, or the Clarke’s suggested earlier to buy some time to fill the coffers a bit then look at better options

I don't disregard your assumption at all - that is my issue here. I haven't even mentioned solar; I've stated that we, as a family of 4 can spend 3-4 days at a time, off grid, just using our leisure battery. This has been in many situations, including Scotland

The theme of the answers is to determine how much power you will need to supply for - hence waiting before purchasing the genny. How much does you e-bike require? Will you really need computers in the MH when tablets work so well for so many? How much power will either require to charge up? Etc. Work out your consumption needs and the frequency you need this power and then determine what genny buy. How much power required for your work tasks?

The Screwfix genny seems noisy ( - skip towards the end - I know that it is being run in a garage but it seems much louder than this Honda one (which, has smaller output but how much do you need? (skip to around 4 mins for it running).

You will probably be using it at full load and to charge a laptop etc. you'll have it running for at least an hour at a time and you might find that you'll regret buying something so loud while it chugs outside your van. You won't have many neighbours in some parts when you wild camp but if you find a perfect spot, you'll p*ss off anyone else there if you've got lots of noise blasting out in paradise.



Check your power demands and look for second hand models if you want to save some £ for something quieter.

 

[Drifter]

We all seem to be getting excited about a noisy office or a lawn mower
I had to go look what 90 dB sounds like, I’m sure the people eating popcorn watching this thread will drown it out ?

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[MattR]

We all seem to be getting excited about a noisy office or a lawn mower
I had to go look what 90 dB sounds like, I’m sure the people eating popcorn watching this thread will drown it out ?

It wasn't that long ago that this sound level was being discussed ... about generators .... because the topic comes up quite often .... https://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/forum/threads/generator-at-lidl.197981/#post-3353677

Ps. Did you get a noise level for the Screwfix genny or is 90db a guess? Coz if it is 95db .... https://www.gcaudio.com/tips-tricks/decibel-loudness-comparison-chart/

 

[Drifter]

It wasn't that long ago that this sound level was being discussed ... about generators .... because the topic comes up quite often .... https://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/forum/threads/generator-at-lidl.197981/#post-3353677

Ps. Did you get a noise level for the Screwfix genny or is 90db a guess?

Someone pointed it out earlier in thread it was in the blurb about it
No one has ever got excited about me cutting the grass and it certainly doesn’t bother me. If it was going all night I can understand all the furore but being honest it seems to be the local topic to get the excitable excited. Every forum has them, let’s just move on and pretend it never happened

 

[MattR]

Someone pointed it out earlier in thread it was in the blurb about it
No one has ever got excited about me cutting the grass and it certainly doesn’t bother me. If it was going all night I can understand all the furore but being honest it seems to be the local topic to get the excitable excited. Every forum has them, let’s just move on and pretend it never happened

There are several contentious topics - just don't ask about dripping grey waste, A frames, yappy dogs or screaming kids . I won't hear your noise in Dundee so I don't care what you get. Nothing else to add.

 

[Minxy]

There are several contentious topics - just don't ask about dripping grey waste, A frames, yappy dogs or screaming kids . I won't hear your noise in Dundee so I don't care what you get. Nothing else to add.

... do you think we should tell him about gassing ....

 

[Minxy]

Someone pointed it out earlier in thread it was in the blurb about it
No one has ever got excited about me cutting the grass and it certainly doesn’t bother me. If it was going all night I can understand all the furore but being honest it seems to be the local topic to get the excitable excited. Every forum has them, let’s just move on and pretend it never happened

Trouble is, you tend not to cut grass for hours at a time or in the middle of a lovely scenic beauty spot ... unless of course you're a caravan club warden on his trusty mini-tractor!

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[Stanbrook]

1. Hope you have a great time in your new motorhome.
2. We have a Honda EU 20i. It is a great choice of generator . lt has a pure sine wave out put and a so called smart system that increases and decreases engine revs as per load demand.
3. Always let the Genny cool down before refuelling.

 

[MattR]

... do you think we should tell him about gassing ....

I thought of leaving that for a surprise

 

[Lenny HB]

we have around nearly 500 payload

Thats not much, I always reckon you need around 700 kg for two people, especially if you are wilding and need full tanks.

 

[thebriars]

We all seem to be getting excited about a noisy office or a lawn mower
I had to go look what 90 dB sounds like, I’m sure the people eating popcorn watching this thread will drown it out ?

You really have no idea here! I fly model airplanes and recently our field was subject to a noise complaint from a resident well over half a mile away. All our planes have to meet an 84dB limit at 2 metres away in any direction AT FULL THROTTLE. Bear in mind we fly at up to 400 ft in the air.

Then remember decibels are a logrithmic scale, so on the decibel scale, the smallest audible sound (near total silence) is 0 dB. A sound 10 times more powerful is 10 dB. A sound 100 times more powerful than near total silence is 20 dB. A sound 1,000 times more powerful than near total silence is 30 dB. Thus the difference between 80dB and 90dB means the sound is 10 times louder!

Noise above 85dB can cause hearing loss.

Normal speech btw is around 60dB, so a 90dB generator is 1000 times louder.

 

[Sundowners]

Here’s one on ebay -

Honda EU10i Invertor Generator | eBay

Marks from previous use.

rover.ebay.com

The Honda is notorious for its longevity, as long as it is serviced and used correctly and will still be worth something in ten years time. You don’t get the fuel smells inside the motorhome as it has a seal on the filler cap which some don’t. Never had smells from ours. It’s plenty big enough to charge batteries. You don’t need to run it each time you use an appliance. Use it to charge your batteries, then use the power from your batteries via an inverter. As long as you have enough amp hours in your batteries to store the power. Make sure you have an inverter big enough to be able to run your appliances. We have a 900w kettle, 700w toaster, 1600w hairdryer, Ramoska 580w, and so on. Just check the wattage if each of your appliances, if you have a 3000w inverter as we do, keep within that. So you could run the toaster and kettle together and have some left. It’s only when you want to run a high wattage item for a long time that your batteries will suffer.

We travelled for a long while without any solar and was quite happy to do so. We purchased a van with a solar system, we upgraded to 480w of solar and 2x230 amp hour batteries and a 3000w inverter. We can now run many electrical items free, especially as most of our time is spent in the sun. As said before we use our genny when needed, it feels very good having that security, we do have the payload to take all of this though.

This is our preferred method, each to their own. We are very happy with it, as people are without a genny. Do what you want, make up your own mind.

Way up your situation, as you say, grey sky’s in Scotland, will differ from ours in the sun in Portugal ?

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